Fortune Favors the Cursed
the-reticent-seer
diverselit
diverselit
1.3K5
An orphan girl with questionable morals. A scarred prince with two lives. One relic to change their world.
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Badriya As-Sahra is sick of piling up camel dung and ...Chapter 39
Yusraa was already waiting by the western wall when Ayaz brought reinforcements.
While Ayaz brought Idris and Minah with him—both were dressed in white for mourning—Yusraa had a man with her who was twice her size. He had the same green eyes as hers but paler, and he looked like he could punch through a wall using only his bare hands.
"This is Kabir," Yusraa said as a greeting, pointing a finger at the man standing beside her. "He's nicer than he looks. I hope the guards will say the same thing."
The man she called Kabir grunted, his arms crossed over his large chest. "Don't make me regret coming here, Yusraa. I'm the closest man you could summon from this damn city."
Yusraa elbowed him, hard, but he barely flinched. "I wasn't going to ask you—or anyone from the Order—for help unless I knew it was important. And don't tell me your job is more important than retrieving the Jewel."
Kabir huffed, turning his pointed gaze toward Ayaz. "He better not expose our secret or else. . ."
Yusraa glanced at Ayaz and gave him an encouraging smile. "He won't."
Ayaz returned the same look. Then, clearing his throat, he gestured at his colleagues. "This is Idris and Minah."
"Salam." Minah waved at the two at the same time Idris said, "Pleasure".
"Which way is to the dungeons?" Yusraa asked immediately.
"Why?" Ayaz asked back, his gaze pointed. "I am—I mean, we will be the ones who'll go there anyway."
Yusraa shook her head. "We shall split up. You and your group will look for the Jewel while we go to the dungeons and free Badriya. If we encounter no trouble, we'll meet with you halfway."
"What? Why don't you look for the Jewel?"
"You're the only one who knows your way around the palace," Yusraa reasoned. "So you're bound to know where the Sultan could hide the Jewel, and it will look suspicious if Kabir and I roam around your palace. It's only logical if you do it."
"How confident are you that my father didn't just bring it with him?" Ayaz fired back. "What if this just turns into a rescue mission?"
What if it became a retrieval? Ayaz asked himself. He suddenly regretted even thinking about it. He shouldn't jump to conclusions without seeing the truth for himself. Badriya was still alive somewhere in the palace, Yusraa believed so. It was only right if he did too.
Please be alive.
"A man like him wouldn't risk losing the Jewel out in the open," she said. "He'll leave it somewhere he thinks is safe, and I believe you're the one who can find it."
"Fine." Ayaz let out a resigned sigh. He wasn't one to back down from an argument easily, but he was tired and they were wasting precious time. "Idris will come with you. I've shown him around once, so he knows where to go."
Idris whipped his head to face him. "What? I won't let you go in there alone!"
"I can take care of myself. The palace is my home." Ayaz placed a hand over Idris' shoulder. "Besides, I'm not alone. Minah's coming with me."
"She's a neophyte," Idris retorted. "She can't protect you if something were to happen to you. She's too young. It was not a good idea to let her come with us in the first place."
"The neophyte can hear you," Minah cut in. "First of all, I'm not young—I'm fourteen. And unlike you, I believe za'eem can handle himself just fine. Of course, I will be there for him all the time to watch his back."